§ Mr. TrotterTo ask the President of the Board of Trade what steps he has taken to obtain the approval of the European Commission to the making of intervention funding available for merchant shipbuilding at Swan Hunter.
§ Mr. Sainsbury[holding answer 19 October 1993]: Following my initial approach to Vice President van Miert in May, applying for the shipbuilding intervention fund for British warship yards, I have submitted to the Commission a detailed case in writing. Since then I have met with Mr. van Miert in Brussels to urge approval of our application and I have pursued this in correspondence and on the telephone, most recently today. Negotiations between officials continue to take place and a further official level meeting is scheduled for Monday 25 October. I will continue to maintain a close involvement in this issue.